Abstract:
A thermally-activated gas extraction device that comprises a bubble capture chamber, an exhaust manifold, a tapered extraction chamber and an extraction heater associated with the tapered extraction chamber. The tapered extraction chamber extends from the bubble capture chamber towards the exhaust manifold and has a cross-sectional area that increases towards the exhaust manifold. A gas removal method in which the gas extraction device is provided, a bubble of gas is accumulated in the bubble capture chamber, a portion of the liquid in the tapered extraction chamber heated to nucleate a bubble of vapor, and the bubble of vapor is heated to explosively expand the bubble of vapor into contact with the walls of the tapered extraction chamber and into contact with the bubble of gas to form a composite bubble. Contact with the walls of the tapered extraction moves the composite bubble towards the exhaust manifold. Finally, heating of the composite bubble is discontinued to condense the vapor in the composite bubble.
Abstract:
An ink jet print head with a substrate defining an ink aperture. A number of ink energizing elements are located on the major surface of the substrate. A barrier layer is connected to the upper surface, and peripherally encloses an ink manifold. The barrier encompasses the ink aperture. An orifice plate is connected to the barrier layer, spaced apart from the substrate's major surface, enclosing the ink manifold. The plate defines a number of orifices, each associated with a respective ink energizing element. The ink manifold is an elongated chamber having opposed ends defined by end wall portions of the barrier layer. The barrier end wall portions each have an intermediate end wall portion protruding into the manifold.
Abstract:
A switching element defines a transmitting state and a reflecting state for a pair of intersecting waveguides that have a gap at their intersection. In the preferred embodiment, the switching element exhibits total internal reflection at the gap sidewall from one waveguide to the other when not in the transmitting state. In the transmitting state, index-matching liquid fills the gap, enabling light to continue in the original waveguide direction. The switching element may use ink jet techniques or bubble techniques to displace index-matching liquid. The index-matching fluid may be projected from a gap between the waveguides by a jet mechanism, or a vapor or dissolved gas bubble may be formed to fill the gap between the waveguides to provide the reflecting state for the switching element. Using either of the techniques, heaters are employed to initiate the switching operation. In some embodiments, more than one heater is utilized. In the preferred embodiment, waveguides are formed on one substrate and heaters are formed on another. Then the substrates are aligned and bonded together to position the heaters in very close proximity to the intersection between the waveguides. Preferably, the switching element is one element in a matrix of such elements for routing signals between arrays of input and output waveguides.
Abstract:
A process is disclosed for removing residual sulfur from a hydrotreated naphtha feedstock. The feedstock is contacted with molecular hydrogen under reforming conditions in the presence of a less sulfur sensitive reforming catalyst to convert trace sulfur compounds to H.sub.2 S, and to form a first effluent. The first effluent is contacted with a solid sulfur sorbent to remove the H.sub.2 S and form a second effluent. The second effluent is then contacted with a highly selective reforming catalyst under severe reforming conditions. Also disclosed is a method using a potassium containing sulfur sorbent made from nitrogen-free potassium compounds.
Abstract:
A process for removing residual sulfur from a hydrotreated naphtha feedstock is disclosed. The feedstock is contacted with molecular hydrogen under reforming conditions in the presence of a less sulfur sensitive reforming catalyst, thereby converting trace sulfur compounds to H.sub.2 S, and forming a first effluent. The first effluent is contacted with a solid sulfur sorbent, removing the H.sub.2 S and forming a second effluent. The second effluent is contacted with a highly selective reforming catalyst under severe reforming conditions.
Abstract:
A hydrocarbon conversion process is disclosed wherein a hydrocarbon feed is contacted with a reforming catalyst in the presence of a halogen at conditions which favor dehydrocyclization, isomerization, and dehydroisomerization of the hydrocarbon feed. The degree of the isomerization and dehydroisomerization is controlled by adjusting the amount of halogen present. The amount of halogen present can be adjusted on stream by the addition of halogen-containing gas or water. The reforming catalyst comprises a large-pore zeolite, containing at least one Group VIII metal. In one embodiment, the reforming catalyst comprises: (a) a large-pore zeolite containing barium and platinum; and (b) an acidic or acidifiable inorganic binder selected from the group consisting of silica-alumina, zirconia-silica and alumina.
Abstract:
A hydrocarbon conversion process is disclosed having a very high selectivity for dehydrocyclization. In one aspect of this process, a hydrocarbon feed is subjected to hydrotreating, then the hydrocarbon feed is passed through a sulfur removal system which reduces the sulfur concentration of the hydrocarbon feed to below 500 ppb, and then the hydrocarbon feed is reformed over a dehydrocyclization catalyst comprising a large pore zeolite containing at least one Group VIII metal to produce aromatics and hydrogen.
Abstract:
An apparatus for generating composite ice includes a water inlet system that receives water; a water treatment that operates on water delivered from the water inlet system, to provide treated water; a cooling system that operates on the treated water to generate ice; and an ice delivery system that outputs the generated ice. The water treatment system introduces a material that includes hollow particles to the water delivered from the water inlet system, the material being selected such that the generated ice, including light scattering centers created by the presence of the material, has an albedo greater than 0.15.
Abstract:
A method for modifying environmental conditions comprises deploying a material having an albedo of at least 0.15 over a surface of a body of water associated with a man-made structure. The deployed material increases an albedo of the surface, increases an evaporation rate at the surface for a given temperature, and decreases a temperature characterizing the man-made structure.
Abstract:
An IOP control valve is disclosed. The IOP control valve comprises a corrugated membrane and a housing including a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet. The corrugated membrane is anchored within the housing to form a reference chamber on a first side of the corrugated membrane and a fluid flow channel on a second opposing side of the membrane. The reference chamber has a reference chamber pressure representative of atmospheric pressure. The fluid flow channel can selectively increase and decrease in size to permit fluid to flow from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet. The corrugated membrane is configured to affect flow through the fluid flow channel from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet by deflecting in response to pressure differentials of the reference chamber pressure and the fluid flow channel pressure acting on the opposing sides of the corrugated membrane.